What is a Certificate of Destruction?

A Certificate of Destruction, often shortened to CoD, is the document confirming a vehicle has been permanently destroyed and can never return to the road. It is issued by an Environment Agency Authorised Treatment Facility once the vehicle has been depolluted and scrapped, and it is what proves the vehicle is no longer your responsibility.

Who can issue a Certificate of Destruction?

Only an Authorised Treatment Facility, licensed by the Environment Agency. A yard that is not an ATF cannot issue one, which matters, because without it there is no formal record that the vehicle was destroyed rather than sold on.

Do I have to tell the DVLA myself, or does the scrapyard do it?

The treatment facility notifies the DVLA that it has taken the vehicle, but you should tell the DVLA yourself as well. Doing it online is free and takes a few minutes. Do not assume it has been handled for you, because until the DVLA has been told, the vehicle is still recorded against your name.

What happens if I do not tell the DVLA?

You stay the registered keeper on the record, so you remain responsible for the vehicle, you can keep receiving tax reminders and penalties for it, and you can be fined for failing to notify. It is the single most common thing people forget when scrapping a car.

Can I scrap a car without the V5C logbook?

Yes, and it happens constantly. Vehicles are scrapped without a logbook every week, usually because it was lost years ago, never handed over when the car was bought, or belonged to a relative who has died. It does not stop the vehicle being scrapped and it does not change what you are paid. Ring us on 01706 393299 with the registration and we will tell you what to bring instead.

Do you need a V5 to scrap a car?

Not to scrap it, no. What the V5C changes is how the DVLA is told. Notifying them online needs the reference number printed on the logbook, so without it the online route is closed and the notification has to be made in writing instead. The vehicle can still be collected, scrapped and paid for as normal.

What do I need to bring if I have no logbook?

Proof of who you are and that the vehicle is yours to sell, typically photo ID and something showing your address. Exactly what is needed varies with the situation, particularly where the registered keeper has died, so ring with the registration first and we will tell you what applies to you rather than you turning up with the wrong thing.

My car has been written off. Do I still have to tell the DVLA?

If the insurer keeps the vehicle they normally handle it. If you keep it, and plenty of people do when the payout is low, it is still registered to you and still your responsibility until it is repaired or scrapped properly. That is the situation people get caught by: the insurance is settled, the car is on the drive, and the DVLA still has it in your name.

What is the difference between Category B, S and N?

Category B means the body shell must be destroyed. Parts can be salvaged but the vehicle can never go back on the road. Category S is structural damage, repairable in principle if it is done properly and the vehicle is re-registered. Category N is non structural damage, often repairable, and often worth more to us running than as metal. The category will be on the letter from your insurer.

Do I get my road tax back?

Yes. Once the DVLA has been told the vehicle is gone, any full months of remaining vehicle tax are refunded. You do not need to apply for it separately.

How long does the paperwork take?

The DVLA notification is immediate if you do it online. The Certificate of Destruction follows once the vehicle has actually been destroyed, rather than on the day it is collected. If you have had no confirmation within a few weeks, chase it.

Paperwork · Explained properly

Certificate of Destruction and telling the DVLA

The bit people get wrong when they scrap a car, and the bit that leaves them still liable for a vehicle that no longer exists.

In short

When you scrap a vehicle in the UK, two separate things have to happen. The Authorised Treatment Facility issues a Certificate of Destruction, confirming the vehicle has been depolluted and permanently destroyed, and the DVLA has to be told the vehicle is no longer yours. Only an Environment Agency Authorised Treatment Facility can legally issue a Certificate of Destruction. Notifying the DVLA is free, can be done online in a few minutes using the reference number on your V5C logbook, and any full months of remaining vehicle tax are refunded. Until the DVLA has been told you are still the registered keeper, which means you remain responsible for the vehicle and can be fined for failing to notify. A vehicle can still be scrapped if the V5C has been lost, it simply takes an extra step.

The four steps, in order

Check the yard is an ATF

Only an Authorised Treatment Facility can legally issue a Certificate of Destruction. Ask for the licence number before the vehicle leaves you. Ours is EAWML/53593.

Hand over the V5C

Give the logbook to the yard when the vehicle is collected. Note the date and who took it, so you have your own record.

Tell the DVLA yourself

Free, online, a few minutes, using the reference number on the V5C. Do not assume the yard has done it for you.

Keep the certificate

The Certificate of Destruction is your proof the vehicle no longer exists and is no longer your responsibility. Do not throw it away.

Why the ATF bit matters more than people think

Anybody can take a car off you. Only an Authorised Treatment Facility can prove it was destroyed.

An ATF is licensed by the Environment Agency and has to depollute a vehicle properly before it is crushed, which means removing fuel, oils, brake fluid, coolant, the battery and the airbags. That licence is also the only thing that allows a Certificate of Destruction to be issued.

So if a yard is not an ATF, there is no formal record your vehicle was destroyed rather than tidied up and moved on with your name still attached to it somewhere in its history.

Our licences

Environment Agency ATF licence: EAWML/53593
Upper tier waste carrier: CBDU155342
Company number: 09948935

Worth asking any yard for these before your vehicle leaves you, not after.

What happens if you do not tell the DVLA

You are still the keeper

On the record the vehicle is still yours. Anything involving it comes back to your name and your address.

The bills keep coming

Tax reminders and penalties for an untaxed or uninsured vehicle carry on arriving for something that no longer exists.

You can be fined

Failing to tell the DVLA you no longer have a vehicle is an offence in its own right, separate from anything else.

It is the most common mistake we see, and it is nearly always because somebody assumed the yard had dealt with it. Do it yourself, the same day, and it is done. Scrapping a vehicle with us →

No logbook? It happens constantly

You can scrap a car without the V5C. It is one of the most common questions we get and the answer is yes, every time.

Most vehicles that come to us without a logbook fall into the same few situations. It was lost years ago and never replaced. It was never handed over when the car was bought. Or it belonged to a relative who has died and nobody can find the paperwork.

None of those stop the vehicle being scrapped, and none of them change what we pay you. A missing logbook is an administrative problem, not a reason to knock money off.

What we will need instead is proof of who you are and that the vehicle is yours to sell. Ring us with the registration and we will tell you exactly what to bring.

The bit that actually changes

It is the DVLA side, not our side.

Telling the DVLA online needs the reference number printed on the V5C. No logbook means no reference number, so the online route is closed to you and the notification has to be made in writing instead.

It still has to be done. Until the DVLA knows, the vehicle is still registered to you and you are still responsible for it, same as if you had the logbook sat in a drawer.

Not sure where you stand?

Ring us with the registration. We will tell you what is needed for your particular situation, whether you end up scrapping it with us or not.

If your car has just been written off

An insurance write off does not automatically mean the vehicle is scrapped, and what happens next depends entirely on the category.

If the insurer keeps the vehicle, they deal with the DVLA and you normally have nothing to do beyond returning the V5C. If you keep it, and plenty of people do when the payout is low, then it is still your vehicle and still your responsibility until you either repair it or scrap it properly.

That second situation is where people get caught. The insurance side is settled, the car is sat on the drive, and the DVLA still has it registered to you.

We buy insurance write offs. Ring with the registration →

What the categories mean

Category B: The body shell must be destroyed. Parts can be salvaged, the vehicle can never return to the road. This is our side of the fence.
Category S: Structural damage. Repairable in principle, but it has to be done properly and the vehicle re-registered.
Category N: Non structural damage. Often repairable, and often still worth more to us running than as metal.

Not sure which yours is? It will be on the letter from the insurer. Ring us with the registration and we will tell you what it is worth either way.

Common questions

What is a Certificate of Destruction?: A Certificate of Destruction, often shortened to CoD, is the document confirming a vehicle has been permanently destroyed and can never return to the road. It is issued by an Environment Agency Authorised Treatment Facility once the vehicle has been depolluted and scrapped, and it is what proves the vehicle is no longer your responsibility.
Who can issue a Certificate of Destruction?: Only an Authorised Treatment Facility, licensed by the Environment Agency. A yard that is not an ATF cannot issue one, which matters, because without it there is no formal record that the vehicle was destroyed rather than sold on.
Do I have to tell the DVLA myself, or does the scrapyard do it?: The treatment facility notifies the DVLA that it has taken the vehicle, but you should tell the DVLA yourself as well. Doing it online is free and takes a few minutes. Do not assume it has been handled for you, because until the DVLA has been told, the vehicle is still recorded against your name.
What happens if I do not tell the DVLA?: You stay the registered keeper on the record, so you remain responsible for the vehicle, you can keep receiving tax reminders and penalties for it, and you can be fined for failing to notify. It is the single most common thing people forget when scrapping a car.
Can I scrap a car without the V5C logbook?: Yes, and it happens constantly. Vehicles are scrapped without a logbook every week, usually because it was lost years ago, never handed over when the car was bought, or belonged to a relative who has died. It does not stop the vehicle being scrapped and it does not change what you are paid. Ring us on 01706 393299 with the registration and we will tell you what to bring instead.
Do you need a V5 to scrap a car?: Not to scrap it, no. What the V5C changes is how the DVLA is told. Notifying them online needs the reference number printed on the logbook, so without it the online route is closed and the notification has to be made in writing instead. The vehicle can still be collected, scrapped and paid for as normal.
What do I need to bring if I have no logbook?: Proof of who you are and that the vehicle is yours to sell, typically photo ID and something showing your address. Exactly what is needed varies with the situation, particularly where the registered keeper has died, so ring with the registration first and we will tell you what applies to you rather than you turning up with the wrong thing.
My car has been written off. Do I still have to tell the DVLA?: If the insurer keeps the vehicle they normally handle it. If you keep it, and plenty of people do when the payout is low, it is still registered to you and still your responsibility until it is repaired or scrapped properly. That is the situation people get caught by: the insurance is settled, the car is on the drive, and the DVLA still has it in your name.
What is the difference between Category B, S and N?: Category B means the body shell must be destroyed. Parts can be salvaged but the vehicle can never go back on the road. Category S is structural damage, repairable in principle if it is done properly and the vehicle is re-registered. Category N is non structural damage, often repairable, and often worth more to us running than as metal. The category will be on the letter from your insurer.
Do I get my road tax back?: Yes. Once the DVLA has been told the vehicle is gone, any full months of remaining vehicle tax are refunded. You do not need to apply for it separately.
How long does the paperwork take?: The DVLA notification is immediate if you do it online. The Certificate of Destruction follows once the vehicle has actually been destroyed, rather than on the day it is collected. If you have had no confirmation within a few weeks, chase it.

Not sure what you have got, or lost the logbook?

Ring us with the registration. We will tell you exactly what is needed and what happens next, whether you scrap it with us or not.

01706 393299 Send us a message

Out of hours 07360 497269